Overcoming Stacked Tolerances with Dry Lubricants

PTFE(Polytetrafluoroethylene) technology can be used to address precision performance of

mechanical assemblies in medical devices

Dry lubricants can give design engineers and manufacturers a solution to the familiar design and production
challenge of stacked tolerances. Tolerances refer to the permissible limit or limits of variation in a physical
dimension, and are specified by the design engineer to allow reasonable leeway for imperfections and inherent
variability - without compromising performance of the finished assembly or process.

This challenge of stacked tolerances becomes an issue for design engineers when working with mechanical
assemblies that have multiple components and moving parts that work in unison. One solution that could be
used to address stacked tolerances is to design everything with tighter tolerances, thus ensuring higher levels
of precision. This option is not usually the most appropriate for the design engineer and manufacturer because
of the high cost associated with it. This is especially true if the finished assembly has a limited service life
expectancy. Higher precision equals higher cost because more frequent inspections and maintenance of the
tooling and machines during manufacturing are necessary to obtain high levels of precision.

A more cost-effective solution to address stacked tolerances is the use of a dry lubricant as a surface
treatment. Dry lubricants using PTFE technology provide a thin, smooth coating over the finished device or
mechanical assembly to reduce friction caused by stacked tolerances. This ensures device functionality and
performance; in fact, dry lubricants can reduce the force needed to actuate a device or assembly by 25 to 30
percent. In high-volume production, the use of dry lubricant can keep those precision costs down while
ensuring device performance.

Dry Lubricant Selection Issues

Dry lubricant fluids are non-flammable and have a high degree of materials compatibility, permitting use on
nearly all types of metals and most plastics including polycarbonates. Despite their wide applicability, when
choosing a dry lubricant, design engineers must take many variables into consideration. Consistency and
quality of the coating is an extremely important variable because it can affect how well the lubricant will
perform. To address this, design engineers must pay attention to the calibration of the fluid. In other words,
the ratio of PTFE particles to carrier fluid should remain at consistent levels throughout the coating process.
This can also be impacted by the evaporation of the carrier fluid.

Another challenge to maintaining calibration is the "hang time" of the PTFE particles within the carrier fluid.
It is common for the PTFE particles to sink in the carrier fluid to the bottom of the vessel, thus affecting
calibration and consistency of the coating. When the part or device is dipped into the fluid, it may end up with
a streaky and inconsistent coating. If manufacturers work to constantly agitate the fluid, this can help to
maintain calibration. However, constant agitation requires a lot of extra work on the production floor and also
can promote evaporation of the carrier fluid. By choosing a dry lubricant vendor that provides a ready-to-use,
pre-mixed and calibrated formula that has a high "hang time" and maintains the ratio of carrier fluid to PTFE
particles, design engineers can be assured that they will achieve a more consistent coating and smoother end-
use actuation.

Another consideration for design engineers when choosing a dry lubricant are the environmental and safety
qualities of the coating.
Google Upgrades Priority Inbox Feature
Google has made some changes in its recently launched in Gmail feature, Priority Inbox. This new feature
brings the most important emails in your Inbox on the top of the list. About this new feature, Google says, it’s
not just a fancy feature but a very useful one. It claims that its own data suggests that people spend about
users of this new feature spend 15 percent less time reading mails that non-Priority-Inbox users and 43 percent
of their reading time is on important emails. The upgradations have been made after analyzing user feedback.
Now, the new Priority Inbox will respond faster to the manual corrections of users. Also, a short box will
appear on you monitor screen, when you are moving the cursor over the importance marker, asking you why
you think this message is important.

Google to launch Chrome OS in mid-2011

The search giant Google has announced that its new operating system (OS), Chrome OS, will hit the markets
sometime around mid of 2011. Samsung and Acer are the first original equipment manufacturers to have
already joined hands with Google; the first net books using the new operating system will make their debut in
mid-2011.

Google had intended to launch the operating system before the end of 2010 but technical problems delayed its
launch. The company said in a press conference that Chrome OS wasn’t ready yet and that there are still
problems plaguing the system. According to the company the main feature of Chrome OS, Google Cloud,
isn’t up to the mark yet.

Google has also shared some of the features which are unique to its OS:

1. It doesn’t take more than 60 seconds for the Chrome OS to launch itself when you boot it for the first time.
2. All the Chrome OS devices will come with built-in 3G; powered by Verizon. The best part is, you don’t
have to pay any activation fee for Chrome OS.
3. A special feature named ‘Guest Profile’ will allow you to access your Chrome OS computer using other
Chrome OS devices. This feature also enables you to share your Chrome OS computer with others.
4. Google Cloud Print enables users to have Cloud-based printing.
5. Chrome OS will have an inbuilt capability not only to detect any malicious codes but also to get rid of
them. Data encryption and sandboxing make sure that your device is secure.